The present invention relates generally to the field of computer data storage, and more particularly to a linear tape file system for data storage on tape.
A linear tape file system (LTFS) provides a file system interface to data that is stored on a magnetic tape medium. The data can be written and read in a manner similar, for instance, to the way data is stored on disks, and removable flash drives. The LTFS specifies a data format and requires corresponding software to provide the file system interface. LTFS is an open specification and is based on a self-describing tape format. The LTFS format prescribes that a tape is divided into two partitions, an index partition and a data partition. Meta-information such as file allocation information is recorded in the index partition. An index and a data body are recorded in the data partition. The LTFS format specification further prescribes that an index is interposed between special markers called file marks.